Tech

4 Ways the Department of Energy Is Tapping Tech for a Greener Future

The Global Innovation Series is supported by BMW i, a new concept dedicated to providing mobility solutions for the urban environment. It delivers more than purpose-built electric vehicles — it delivers smart mobility services. Visit bmw-i.com or follow @BMWi on Twitter.

This week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will re-launch its website, Energy.gov, to provide tools to help individuals and businesses better understand how to save energy and money. You can type your zip code into the site and get hyper-local information about your city, county and state, including information on tax credits, rebates and energy saving tips.

The site presents DOE data visually using the open source MapBox suite of tools, and localized data and maps can be shared or embedded on any website or blog. Other data sets the DOE is mapping include alternative fuel locations and per capita energy usage. Anyone can now compare how his state's energy usage compares with others across the country. In addition to making the data more palatable for the public, the DOE is offering open data sets for others to use.

"Our goal is simple — to improve the delivery of public services online. We're using government data to go local in a way that's never been possible before. We're connecting the work of the Energy Department with what's happening in your backyard,” says Cammie Croft, senior advisor and director of new media and citizen engagement at the DOE. “We’re making Energy.gov relevant and accessible to consumers and small businesses in their communities.”

How else is the Energy Department working to bring better information about energy, renewable energies and energy technology to the public? Here are a few examples.

1. Your MPG

If you’re looking for the cheapest gas price near you, tips to maximize your gas mileage, or to compare new and used cars to identify the ones that will save you more on gas, look no further than FuelEconomy.gov. The site covers information about energy use and your vehicle including fuel use, fuel cost, and greenhouse gas emissions.

The "Your MPG" feature on the site lets you upload data about your own vehicle’s fuel usage to your “cyber” garage and get a better picture of how your vehicle is doing in terms of energy consumption. The system also aggregates the personal car data from all of the site’s users anonymously so people can share their fuel economy estimates.

"You can track your car's fuel economy over time to see if your efforts to increase MPG are working," says David Greene, research staffer at Oak Ridge National Lab. "Then you can compare your fuel data with others and see how you are doing relative to those who own the same vehicle."

Greene says his team works with the data provided by the public to better understand why people’s MPG varies. In the works for the site is a predictive tool you can use when you are in the market for a new or used vehicle to more accurately predict the kind of mileage any given car will give you, based on your particular driving style and conditions. The system, says Greene, reduces the +/- 7 mpg margin of error of standard EPA ratings by about 50% to give you a more accurate estimate of what your MPG will be.

2. America’s Next Top Energy Innovator

In response to the White House’s Startup America program supporting innovation and entrepreneurship, the Energy Department launched its own version — America’s Next Top Energy Innovator Challenge. The technology transfer program gives startups the chance to license Energy Department technologies developed at the 17 national laboratories across the country at an affordable price. Entrepreneurs can identify Energy Department technologies through the Energy Innovation Portal, where more than 15,000 patent and patent applications are listed along with more than 450 market summaries describing some of the technologies in layman’s terms.

Once a company selects the technology of interest to them, they fill out a short template to apply for an option — a precursor to an actual license of the patent — for $1,000. A company can license up to three patents on one technology from a single lab per transaction, and patent fees are deferred for two years. The program also connects entrepreneurs to venture capitalists as mentors.

“High-growth startups are the economic engine of job creation and supporting them is critically important,” says Karina Edmonds, technology transfer coordinator at the DOE. “The America’s Next Top Innovator Challenge will reduce barriers for startup creation based on Department of Energy technologies and reduce transaction costs — time and dollars.”

Later this year, each lab will nominate one of the companies optioning their technologies. A panel including venture capital and program managers from the DOE will judge the nominees, and several winning companies will be featured at the 2012 ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit. There are also plans for a social media component of the contest for a “people’s choice” award.

3. Products: Smarter Windows

The DOE funds research and development efforts leading to the manufacturing of products that will someday be in our homes and significantly impact energy savings. One area of R&D applies to building efficiency, and more specifically, to windows.

DOE funding, along with private investments, supports a number of companies including the Michigan-based company Pleotint. Pleotint developed a specialized glass film that uses energy generated by the sun to limit the amount of heat and light going into a building or a home. The technology is called Sunlight Responsive Thermochromic (SRT™), and it involves a chemical reaction triggered by direct sunlight that lightens or darkens the window’s tint. Windows made from this glass technology are designed to change based on specific preset temperatures.

Another DOE-funded company, Sage ElectroChromics, created SageGlass®, electronically controlled windows that use small electric charges to switch between clear and tinted windows in response to environmental heat and light conditions. And Soladigm has an electronic tinted glass product that is currently undergoing durability testing.

4. Solar Decathlon

Since 2002, the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon has challenged collegiate students to develop solar-powered, highly efficient houses. Student teams build modular houses on campus, dismantle them and then reassemble the structures on the National Mall. The competition has taken place biennially since 2005. Open to the public and free of charge, the next event will take place at the National Mall’s West Potomac Park in Washington, D.C. from September 23 to October 2, 2011. There are 19 teams competing this year.

Teams spend nearly two years planning and constructing their houses, incorporating innovative technology to compete in 10 contests. Each contest is worth 100 points to the winner in the areas of Architecture, Market Appeal, Engineering, Communications, Affordability, Comfort Zone, Hot Water, Appliances, Home Entertainment and Energy Balance. The team with the most points at the end of the competition wins.

During the competition, everything that uses electricity or water in the house is fully functional. To demonstrate this and to show efficient use of energy, teams engage in specific activities such as cooking and washing clothes. Houses don’t just need to be affordable, attractive and livable — they also need to supply energy for cooking, cleaning and entertainment appliances and produce as much energy — or more — than the houses consume.

“The Solar Decathlon creates a powerful opportunity to raise public awareness about the energy-saving benefits of highly efficient home design and renewable energy technologies,” says Richard King, director of the Solar Decathlon. “Through the competition, the next generation of engineers, architects, designers and other professionals will gain valuable experience that will help them lead America toward a clean energy future."

Since its inception, the Solar Decathlon has seen the majority of the 15,000 participants move on to jobs related to clean energy and sustainability.

The DOE’s digital strategy for the Solar Decathlon includes the use of QR codes to provide a mobile interactive experience for visitors to the event in Washington, D.C., as well as Foursquare checkin locations for the event and for each participating house. Many of the teams are already blogging leading up to the event and there are virtual tours and computer animated video walkthroughs to share the Solar Decathlon experience with a global audience. There will be TweetChats using the hashtag #SD2011 and other activities on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube.

The Future

In terms of renewable energies, the DOE tries to stay on the cutting edge. Some of their forward-thinking projects include the Bioenergy Knowledge Discovery Framework (KDF), containing an interactive database toolkit for access to data relevant to anyone engaged with the biofuel, bioenergy and bioproduct industries. Another is an interactive database that maps the energy available from tidal streams in the United States. The database, developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology in cooperation with the Energy Department, is available online.

The tidal database gives researchers a closer look at the potential of tidal energy, which is a “predictable” clean energy resource. As tides ebb and flow, transferring tidal current to turbines to become mechanical energy and then converting it to electricity. There are already a number of marine and hydrokinetic energy projects under development listed on the site.

Where will energy technology go next? It’s anybody’s guess, but there's a good chance the DOE will be there.

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The Global Innovation Series is supported by BMW i, a new concept dedicated to providing mobility solutions for the urban environment. It delivers more than purpose-built electric vehicles; it delivers smart mobility services within and beyond the car. Visit bmw-i.com or follow @BMWi on Twitter.

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